My Unique Fashion Sense | Moscow, Russia – Edge of Humanity Magazine

Journalist Natalia Ershova is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this documentary photography. From the project ‘Ordinary Suspect’. To see Natalia’s body of work, click on any photograph.

I have always been interested in fashion. Why do people dress this way or another? What do they want to express by their appearance and what is behind their choice of clothes, cosmetics, jewelry? After all, the clothes we wear become a part of our existence. Every morning, choosing an outfit, we choose a new skin, mood, sign and message we address to other people. With our clothes we show how we perceive our personality, our body, the world around us. Fashion is everywhere: on the streets, in apartments, in things and objects that seem to be far from a concept of style. The way we dress are ideas we express without words.

For my project I choose people who contradict to public taste and express their individuality through appearance. I meet my heroes on the streets to be sure they always dress like this. I shoot them in their workplaces or, if they don’t work, in their apartments. I ask each character a few questions: Why do they dress like this? What does clothing mean for them? What do they mean by good taste? How do they perceive fashion? I listen to their stories and also ask their age and profession. People have always expressed themselves through appearance, it is part of our visual culture. But today, in a world of greater tolerance, clothing is no longer a sign of social class or wealth, but rather an expression of an individual worldview and sense of proportion. Because we dress the way we live.